Connecticut western news., 1887-03-23
FIRE IN BUFFALO
Loss of Twelve Lives-A Hotel
 Burned.

BUFFALO, March IS A fire was discovered at S.30 o'clock this morning in the new Rich mond Hotel.
 At four o'clock the entire Richmond Hotel, block were doomed to speedy destruction. The whole place burned like a tinde1-box. The corridor in the centre of the building acted as great funnel, and, as the flames streamed upward the guests found themselves imprison- ed by wall of fire. Their cries for help could be heard for blocks. At many of the windows could be seen frightened people in their night clothes calling wildly for help. At the third floor windows two persons were seen by the crowd to fall back into the flames. One man jumped from the fifth floor to the roof of two-.tory wooden building adjoining. He ewas seriously injured.
 The number of persons in jured is not exactly known. Hon. M. W. Borse, of Orlean, was terribly burned about the hands and wrists. A number of insurance men were in this building and several of them were badly injured. Among them are W. J. Mckay of Niagara Falls, c. w. Dubois of Syracuse, W. s. Dew y of Rochester, who escaped with bad burns; Clinton Bidwell of PittsLhrg, badly burned. At the Emergency Hospital are Charles Davis of New York, hands and feet badly burned; H. B. Smith of the North British Insurance Company of New York, hands and feet burned; Edward Whelan of New York, hands in ter injured. The Fitch Hospital contains about eight men and one woman. All are in pretty bad condition, and more or less seriously in- jured. All are from out of tewn except the woman. Five injured persons are at the Sis ter's Hospital, and four are at the General Hospital.
 a. m.-At this hour it is thought that twelve persons have lost their lives, but this is, in a measure, mere guess-work. There l were 125 persons in the hotel, 70 of whom and the rest were porters, bell-boys, the fam lilies of the proprietors, and clerks. Twenty two of these were rescued from the windows by the fremen, twenty-two are at the hospitals, and 8 large number made their own scape. The origin of the fire is not as yet known.
 William H. Abort, the night clerk, says ssThe fire started in the cloak-room, under the main stairway at $50 o'clock There was mo- body up but myself, Joe, the night-porter, and Hummer, the bell,boy, l pulled Ill foul the people came flying down stairs in their night-c1othes. The fire followed the elevator, and inside of five minutes it reached the top floor. I rushed out of doors after doing all I could."
 Five girls were seen in fifth story window who had tied the bed, clothing into rope, which they hung out, but none of them seem ed to have the courage to start. At last ono of the five took hold and swung down tb 6 window ledge from which she Was assisted by Messrs. Clay and Smith. Three others came down in the same manner, and then the fifth girl started down. She had gone but httls distance when the rope parted, and down she went four stories, atfange to say she was not killed. Hef legs were terribly cut and bruis- ed, her back badly injured, and her face and arms were in frightful condition from burns. She lay moaning upon lounge at the Spencer House. begging to be sent homo. Hef name is said to be Mary Council, of No. All Ham, burg street.
 n2rrA1o. March 1e.-There were 1a5 people in the hotel, of whom a majority were injured. About 20 are so badly burned that their death is predicted. A number of dead bodies are supposed to be in the ruins. Two bodies are recovered and six people are missing; William H. Abort, the night clerk at the Richmond, states that he WAS sitting in the office about $40 o'clock when he saw a reflection on the tile floor. Turning around he discovt red a blaze in the coat and cloak room directly una der the stairway, on the main floor. What caused the fire he ccnld not tell, and he did not stop to investigate, but immediately gave the alarm and started the electric annuncia- | tors, which communicated with every room in the house. The flames at once darted up the elevator shafts with tremendous force, and in an incredibly short time the interior of the | hotel was filled With smoke and flame. Then the terrible scenes began.
 The hotel was an ideal fire trap. It was a nearly square building, six stories hlgh, with large court or open we'll hole in the middle. At the bottom of this court was the office. The upper floors opened on the court by wooden balconies supported by iron pillars. The fire first shot up through the elevator shaft, and then broke out into the central court, running along the balconies and sucking upward as | through vast funnel. The building was doomed from the first and burned with incredible rap idity It was in the heart of the city, at the corner of Main and Eagle streets, and about it on two sides were innumerable telegraph, telephone and electric light wires. Within if teen minutes of the first alarm the greater part of the Fire Department was at work. Several of the engines in use in this city are of inadequate power and throw small and weak streams This fact and the network of wires to be broken put the firemen at an awful dis advantage. In spite of the flood of water turned on the hotel in half an hour but 8
 great shell of brick wall, enclosing sheets of l flame.